BIA budget largely staying the same in appropriations bill (April 13, 2011)

The Bureau of Indian Affairs will see some cuts in the budget bill unveiled by the House Appropriations Committee on Tuesday. But the cuts aren't significant, given the $38 billion that was put on the chopping block as part of...

Witness list for Senate Indian Affairs hearing on three bills (April 13, 2011)

The Senate Indian Affairs Committee will consider three bills at a hearing tomorrow. The bills are S.636, a bill to move the Quileute Tribe of Washington out of a tsunami zone; S.703, the Helping Expedite and Advance Responsible Tribal Homeownership...

Tule River Tribe donates $15K for city's fireworks celebration (April 13, 2011)

The Tule River Tribe in California will contribute $15,000 to help the city of Porterville celebrate its 150th anniversary. The tribe is matching $15,000 that the city will use to put on a fireworks show during the Freedom Fest. The...

Dan Jones: US not always the strong one in Indian relations (April 13, 2011)

"John Stossel stirred up controversy recently for his comments about the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA). Many American Indians are not happy with the performance of the BIA. It has a long history of mismanagement of American Indian Tribal and...

Flooding forces evacuations from three reserves in Manitoba (April 13, 2011)

Flooding has forced hundreds of people to evacuate from three First Nations in southern Manitoba. The largest evacuation has taken place on the Peguis First Nation. Some 255 people have left due to heavy flooding, and another 515 are at...

Students at school on Navajo Nation treated for taking pills (April 13, 2011)

Five students at a public school on the Navajo Nation were hospitalized after ingesting prescription medication. A student brought the pills to the Eva B. Stokely Elementary School in Shiprock, New Mexico, on Friday. He gave them to four students,...

Crow Tribe at the table for talks on Little Bighorn Monument (April 13, 2011)

The Crow Tribe of Montana is willing to work with the National Park Service on plans for a new visitor center and museum at Little Bighorn Battlefield National Monument, Chairman Cedric Black Eagle said. The monument sits entirely within reservation...

Editorial: Oklahoma tribes threaten legal action over water (April 13, 2011)

"The greatest surprise in the news that two Indian tribes have threatened to sue over a deal involving southeastern Oklahoma City water is that it took so long to happen. The threat came in a cease and desist letter sent...

Blue Lake Rancheria shuts down business staffing company (April 13, 2011)

The Blue Lake Rancheria of California has shut down Mainstay Business Solutions, its temporary staffing company. The tribe said it can't keep the business running due to a dispute with the state Economic Development Department. The company has been fined...

Southern Ute Tribe makes history with first woman as chair (April 13, 2011)

The Southern Ute Tribe of Colorado elected its first woman leader in a special election on Tuesday. Pearl Casias defeated four candidates for the post. She won with 37 percent of the vote, The Durango Herald reported. Casias replaces Matthew...

Chairwoman of Quileute Tribe will testify at Senate hearing (April 13, 2011)

Bonita Cleveland, the chairwoman of the Quileute Tribe of Washington, will testify at a Senate Indian Affairs Committee hearing on Thursday. Cleveland will testify in support of S. 636. The bill transfers 772 acres within Olympic National Park to the...

Rival Little Shell Chippewa leaders want to testify at hearing (April 13, 2011)

Rival leaders of the Little Shell Tribe of Chippewa Indians in Montana want to testify at a Senate Indian Affairs Committee hearing on Thursday. John Sinclair and John Gilbert each claim to lead the tribe. Sinclair said he has been...

Oneida Nation documents veterans who served in Civil War (April 13, 2011)

The Oneida Nation in Wisconsin is documenting the role its members played in the Civil War. Under the Conscription Law, tribal members were paid $300 to join the Union Army. But they were enlisted under the names of non-Indians. "There...

Oneida Nation accuses attorney of benefiting from lawsuits (April 13, 2011)

The Oneida Nation is accusing the attorney for Madison County in New York of profiting from litigation involving the tribe. According to the tribe, John Campanie has received more than $800,000 in compensation from Nixon Peabody, the law firm that...

Tohono O'odham man accused of killing seven-year-old boy (April 13, 2011)

A member of the Tohono O'odham Nation who just completed a tribal court sentence has been charged with killing a seven-year-old boy in Arizona. Alvin Valenzuela, 21, allegedly shot and killed Johnathon Federico on Saturday morning. Valenzuela was apparently firing...

Warm Springs Tribes use stimulus funds for telecom startup (April 13, 2011)

The Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs Reservation in Oregon are using a $5.6 million stimulus grant to open a telecommunications company. The tribe will provide phone service, high-sped Internet and video on the reservation. "It will elevate the quality of...

Richard Wagamese: Finding way back to Ojibway traditions (April 13, 2011)

"There are three traditional hand drums in our home. Two were gifts and one was made by my wife a handful of summers ago. They hang on our walls as reminders that we're supposed to be prayerful, to be in...

Senate Indian Affairs Committee field hearing at Wind River (April 13, 2011)

The Senate Indian Affairs Committee will hold a field hearing next Wednesday, April 20, in Wyoming. The hearing will examine deferred maintenance and management issues at the Wind River Irrigation Project. In 2006, the Government Accountability Office said the Bureau...

Editorial: Withdraw bid for 'exorbitant' Cobell attorney fees (April 13, 2011)

"When Congress at long last approved a $3.4 billion settlement last year to Natives for the shameful way it handled their trust accounts for more than a century, it seemed that all that remained was for the government to start...

Shinnecock Nation voters oust incumbent trustee in run-off (April 13, 2011)

The Shinnecock Nation of New York held its first run-off election in over 200 years. Voters ousted incumbent Lance Gumbs and elected Frederick C. Bess, a former trustee. This will be Bess's sixth term on the board. This was the...